It's All About The Challenges
by Conjuring Rain
Summary: Dawn realized Barry was looking at her and she looked up, blushing even harder from doing so. She started to feel weak at the knees and she was angry with herself for getting so worked up over a simple dance with Barry! Has she always been attracted to him? That was impossible! Could it actually be love at first sight?


**Note: **This is TwinleafShipping! However, there are little hints of PenguinShipping and a tiny bit of ShootsDownShipping. If you do not like these Shippings, then I suggest you leave now.

I do not own the characters or the songs mentioned in this story. I only own the story itself and nothing else.

Enjoy!

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**It's All About the Challenges**

* * *

"Mom, can you remind me again who you're going out with tonight?" Dawn questioned her mother, Johanna.

Dawn was sitting at the kitchen table, her hands wrapped around a glass of milk. Her blue eyes were on Johanna. The fifteen year old watched as her mother rushed around the living room, getting ready and whatnot for her date.

"Palmer, dear. His name is Palmer!" Johanna responded as she continued to get ready, rushing around and everything.

Dawn began to look very thoughtful and she frowned, looking down at the milk in her glass cup. "Palmer? Why does that name sound so familiar?" She whispered to herself.

"He's a Frontier Brain, sweetie!" Johanna talked, making her way over to Dawn and smoothing out a dark blue dress she wore. "How do I look, Dawn? Do I look okay?"

Dawn smiled gently at her. "You look beautiful, mom!"

Johanna grinned and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Oh, thank you honey! Well, I'm off!" She declared, grabbing her purse and heading towards the door to the house. "You can do anything you like while I'm gone; just don't get into any trouble!"

"I won't, mom! No need to worry!" Dawn exclaims cheerfully, holding up her glass of milk.

Johanna turned around to give her daughter one last smile before stepping out of the house, shutting the door behind her and hurrying off to wherever her date was going to be.

Dawn suddenly frowned, setting her cup of milk back on to the table. "I know this Palmer character is a Frontier Brain, but still…I think there's something else that I'm missing!" She said to herself.

"Piplup! Pip, pip, pip!" Piplup suddenly came running into the room, followed by Pachirisu and Glameow. It looked like they were playing a game of tag. They looked like they were having a lot of fun and Dawn wanted to join in, but she felt like going outside.

Dawn gulped down the rest of her milk and hopped off of her chair, landing on the ground flawlessly. She turned to her Pokémon and Glameow and smiled. "Hey! I'm going out, guys! I'll be back as soon as possible! Bye!" She hurried out of the house, slamming the door behind her.

The dark blue haired girl got on to a bicycle and started riding through Twinleaf Town, a smile on her face.

**[Barry]**

Barry was sitting on a couch in front of a TV, watching two kids battle or something. He was paying no attention to his father, Palmer, who was getting ready for a date with a person he forgot the name of. Barry had a bit of a cold and just felt a little weak today. Plus, he had a small headache. His father had told him to rest, but Barry could not sleep at all.

"Son, I'll be back later on tonight, all right? Try to get some rest and try to eat something. You haven't eaten since yesterday!" Palmer tells his son, as he stops in front of him, blocking the TV from Barry's eyes.

Barry moved his eyes to look up at his father. "Dad, you're in the way! Move it!"

Palmer sighed, but moved out of the way. "I want you to try to get some rest and to try to eat something. If you don't, I'll be very cross with you. So you better do it. You hear me, boy?" Palmer questioned him, sounding very serious.

The fifteen year old boy waved his hand at his dad. "Yeah, yeah…I get it, dad!" He said before sneezing violently. Barry grabbed a box of tissues and pulled one out, blowing his nose.

"Good." Palmer grunted and headed for the door.

"W-Wait…!" Barry suddenly calls out, turning around to look at his father, curiosity burning in his eyes.

"What?" Palmer questioned.

"Who're you dating again?" He asked.

"Johanna." Palmer responded before leaving, slamming the door behind him and taking off.

Barry turned back around on the couch and frowned deeply. "That name sounds very familiar…huh…" He muttered to himself and continued to watch TV, completely bored.

Barry started to wonder why his father even bothered dating someone else. Five years ago, Barry's mother had left his father for reasons that are unknown to him. She just up and left, not saying a word. Palmer had been crushed and seriously hurt, but had gotten over it.

Having watched enough of TV, Barry grabbed the remote and turned it off. He got to his feet and put a hand over his forehead, feeling that headache throbbing painfully. He sighed heavily and decided he needed some fresh air.

Barry left the house, knowing he'd be in big trouble if his father saw him outside. After all, Barry was sick.

"But I don't like being cooped up in there!" Barry complained to himself, shutting the door behind him and walking down the street of Twinleaf Town, wondering about Johanna. He knew that she was a well known Coordinator, but he felt like he was missing something about her!

**[Dawn]**

Feeling a bit hungry, Dawn stopped in front of a place she really liked to visit called _Pachirisu Pizza_. Dawn parked her bicycle in front of the place and then happily went on in.

Immediately, music began playing. The whole place is pretty much like a restaurant with tables and chairs. Everything inside was blue and white, the color of a Pachirisu. The place also had karaoke. Sometimes, when Dawn visited, she liked to get up on stage and sing and dance.

There are about a dozen people inside at the moment and one person was already up on stage, clumsily singing _Ride Like the Wind_ by Christopher Cross. The person was dancing pretty goofily up there and that only made Dawn giggle a bit.

The dark blue haired girl ordered two slices of cheese pizza for herself along with some breadsticks. She went to go look for a table to sit at, but was surprised to see her older brother, Lucas, and her friends, Kenny and Zoey. Dawn was thrilled and surprised to see them!

Dawn hurried on over to them, shocked. "What are you guys doing here?" She questioned them, and then her eyes moved over to her brother. "Lucas, what are you doing back in Sinnoh? I thought you were still in Kanto!" She exclaimed cheerfully.

Lucas smiled up at her, gesturing for her to take a seat at the table next to him. Dawn did so and then Lucas said, "What? I can't come visit my mother and little sister?"

Dawn smiled brightly and hugged Lucas tightly. Lucas returned her hug and then the two pulled away. "Of course you can, Lucas! I'm glad you're here! I just thought you were still traveling through Kanto!" Dawn responded. "And how come you didn't go straight home when you arrived in Twinleaf Town?"

"Well, you see, I got hungry and I decided to come here before stopping home," Lucas answered with a shrug of his shoulders, grinning. "And, luckily, these two were here!" He pointed at Zoey and Kenny across from them.

"What's up, Dee Dee?" Kenny questioned with a smirk.

Dawn immediately got upset. "Don't call me that!" She shouted through the loud music that was playing in the place. Her features suddenly softened and she smiled at him. "It's good to see you again, Kenny!"

"What about me?" Zoey asked, resting her elbows on to the table and giving Dawn a smile.

Dawn beamed at her. "I missed you too, Zoey! No need to worry! It's been so long!"

"I know!" Zoey agreed.

"We were just catching up with Lucas here." Kenny talked, pointing all of his fingers at Lucas.

"That's great!" Dawn laughed merrily. "This is all great!"

"So how's mom, Dawn? Is she doing okay? Oh, and how's Glameow?" Lucas questioned his little sister.

Dawn nods. "Yup! She's doing just fine! She's on a date right now, so she won't be back until later on tonight! Glameow's okay too!"

Lucas looked completely shocked and perplexed. "Huh? What? Mom's on a date? With who?!"

"Johanna's on a date?!" Kenny exclaimed, eyes wide.

"That's a shocker." muttered Zoey.

"I know," Dawn sighed. "I was really shocked as well. I never would expect my mom to go out with someone on a date! She's on a date with some guy named Palmer. He's a Frontier Brain. I met him once when I was on my journey with Ash and Brock. However, I just can't shake the feeling that there's something else that I'm missing about the guy!"

"She's going out with the Frontier Brain, _Palmer_?!" Lucas exclaimed loudly, his eyes getting bigger and bigger. "How in the world did this happen? What does she _see_ in him?!"

Dawn shrugged. "I have no idea."

"Wow, Dee Dee!" Kenny laughed in amusement. "You're going to have a new father if your mom and Palmer get married one day! He's going to be your new daddy!"

Dawn flushed in embarrassment and glared at Kenny. "Oh, hush!" She hissed at him. "And don't call me Dee Dee!"

Kenny only laughed some more.

Zoey laughed behind closed lips at this, finding it to be amusing as well, but Dawn didn't yell at her for it.

"This is so…unreal." Lucas whispered, his eyes still huge.

Dawn began to drum her fingers on the table. "Kind of…but, I guess mom was just lonely, you know?"

Lucas sighed heavily, leaning back in his chair. "Yeah, but I'm still shocked. I can't believe mom is dating Palmer. It's so weird!"

"That's what I think," Dawn muttered. "But she seems to really like him. Whenever she talks about him she gets this loving look in her eyes and she can't stop smiling! She talks about him _all the time_!"

"Sounds like Palmer's her favorite topic." Zoey commented, messing around with a saltshaker on the table.

"I'm sure you'll get used to it, Lucas." Kenny reminds him with a shrug, sighing a little.

"I don't think I'm ever going to get used to it!" Lucas talked, shaking his head slowly. "I mean, it will be seriously weird to have Palmer as a dad! I mean, does he have kids?"

After hearing this, Dawn looked up, almost remembering something. However, that memory slipped away quickly and she was confused once again. "Huh," She mumbled. "I almost remembered something right there."

"I'm not sure if he has kids or not," Zoey responded, looking over at Lucas. "I've never met the guy."

"Neither have I." Kenny added.

"Well, if he does have kids, Dawn and I will have some more siblings, which I think is a really bad idea!" Lucas muttered.

"Hey, you talk as if mom's going to marry the guy!" Dawn points out, frowning at her brother.

"It's a huge possibility!" Lucas retorted.

Dawn huffed and folded her arms, looking away from her brother and off towards the stage where a girl sang _Breath of Life _by Florence and the Machine. Dawn kind of liked the song and started moving her head to the music.

"So how does your mom describe Palmer, Dawn?" Zoey questioned Dawn curiously.

The dark blue haired girl looked down at her lap, contemplating. "Well, she's always saying that he's unique and a sweet guy. She also says that he's a challenge and that it's all about the challenges with him…whatever that means. Mom says he has a big heart and is always nice to her, always doing things for her…" Dawn trailed off, her frown deepening.

"That is just…so weird." mumbled Lucas.

"Hey! I'm happy for mom. I'm glad she has someone to love with all her heart," Dawn tells him. "Aren't you happy for her, Lucas?"

Lucas sighed, "I guess so."

Dawn grinned. "Good!"

"So is there anyone that you like out there, Dawn?" Zoey questioned Dawn curiously, out of the blue. "Paul, perhaps?"

Dawn's face twisted up into a look of horror and perplexity. "No way! He's a big meanie! Whenever I see him he never recognizes me! Plus, he's always calling me troublesome when I'm not troublesome!" She exclaims.

"Sis, you sometimes are." Lucas pointed out, smirking.

"I agree!" Kenny joined in.

Dawn pouted at what they said. "I'm not trouble!"

Everyone laughed at that.

"So _is_ there anybody you like, Dawn?" Zoey asked again, curiosity lacing her tone.

Dawn started to think about it, but couldn't think of anybody at the moment. Well, she thought of Ash, but they were just friends and that's all they'll ever be. "Well…no. Not really. What about you?" Dawn responded.

Zoey hesitated before saying, "No."

"I saw some hesitation!" Kenny said loudly, turning to look at Zoey to see that her cheeks were touched a pinkish color.

"There's nobody," Zoey said calmly, refusing to look at Kenny. "Now leave it at that."

Kenny watched her for a few seconds suspiciously before turning his head away and looking at Dawn, smiling.

"Hey, Kenny, you like anybody?" Dawn questioned him, raising her eyebrows curiously.

Kenny's face flushed and his eyes got big. "Ah…um…n-no…I can't say that I do!"

"You denied it pretty quickly!" Lucas talked, smiling in great amusement at Kenny. "It's so obvious that you have a crush on my sister!"

Dawn and Kenny both gasped loudly after hearing this, and both of their faces turned a tomato red.

"THAT IS NOT TRUE!" They both roared, people looking in their direction because of how loud they were.

Lucas started laughing hysterically at this, pointing at them and holding his stomach. "Hahahahahaha! Look at your faces! It's just too funny! I should've brought a mirror with me!" He laughed and laughed and laughed.

Zoey started snickering at this while Dawn and Kenny pouted, crossing their arms and looking all embarrassed.

"Well, _Lucas_, there must be someone that _you_ fancy!" Kenny spat out, still upset about being embarrassed.

"Yeah, tell us, _big brother_." Dawn says, looking over at him, her arms still folded.

Lucas calmed down from all of the laughter and shook his head, grinning. "Nope! Nobody has captured my interest yet! However, I'm hoping someday that someone will!"

Suddenly, two Pachirisus came over, pushing a small cart with food on it towards them. They stopped and then sat their food and stuff on to the table for them. "Pachi!" They both cheered happily before pushing the cart away.

"Yay! Thank you!" Dawn thanked them before picking up one of her slices of cheese pizza, eagerly biting into it.

"Yes!" Lucas grabbed a slice of pizza with pineapples on it, consuming it hungrily and greedily.

Kenny and Zoey grabbed their food, which was pizza and chicken and began eating them hungrily, smiles on their faces.

As Dawn ate, she watched the person on the stage sing, which was a guy who was singing _Let it Rock_ by Kevin Rudolf. Her thoughts began to travel back to that memory that she just couldn't recall.

**[Barry]**

Barry walked slowly through the streets of Twinleaf Town, extremely bored and very tired. He kept sneezing and coughing all over the place, still very much sick. However, he didn't want to go back home to lie down. He wanted to stay outside and do _something_.

"Dad said I should eat, so maybe I should get some food somewhere…" Barry mumbled to himself, looking around for somewhere to eat.

He saw a couple of places, but started making his way towards _Pachirisu Pizza_. His stomach started growling as he entered the place.

But then, he stopped in his tracks because he heard a voice he recognized very well. He looked towards the stage in the pizza place and saw Dawn up there, singing and dancing cheerfully. She was singing _Cannibal_ by Kesha, which Barry found very disturbing.

"_Carnivore animal, I am a cannibal_!" Dawn sang perfectly up on the stage, dancing to the beat.

Even though Barry found Dawn's voice to be pretty amazing, he still thought that the song she was singing was really disturbing. However, most of the people in the place were up and dancing about or just moving their heads to the music.

Barry wondered why Dawn was there in the first place. He was surprised when his eyes landed on Lucas, Kenny, and Zoey. The three of them were just sitting at a table together, their eyes on Dawn. It looked like they had just got finished eating.

Barry made his way over to them, waving at them and smiling, trying to appear normal and _not_ sick. The three of them were very shocked to see him and the four of them began to chat for a few minutes before looking back up at Dawn who continued her little dance and song.

"Why'd she choose _this_ song?" Barry questioned them curiously, watching as Dawn spun around in a circle, her hair whipping around with her.

"She said she wanted to surprise everyone." Lucas responded with a shrug of his shoulders.

"But it is so _weird_ and _disturbing_!" Kenny added with a nod of his head, looking a little freaked out.

"I know! The song is about…eating guys…" Barry muttered, sneezing right after.

"_I eat boys up, breakfast and lunch_," Dawn continued singing moving her hips to the song and having a blast. "_Then when I'm thirsty, I drink their blood. Carnivore animal, I am a cannibal. I eat boys up, you better run_."

When Dawn finished everyone in the restaurant were clapping rigorously, having enjoyed Dawn's interesting performance.

Dawn laughed happily and bowed, handing the microphone to someone else. That someone else began singing _Sailing_ by Christopher Cross. Most of the people in the restaurant were dancing slowly to the song.

Dawn jollily took her seat beside her brother again, not noticing Barry at all, but Barry was just staring at her. "So how did I do, guys? Wasn't that awesome? It was so much fun!" She giggled.

"You were great, sis," Lucas complimented with a smile. "But next time, choose a different song. Kenny was pretty freaked out by that one."

"I wasn't _that_ freaked out!" Kenny defended.

"Don't deny it." Zoey tells him with a shake of her head.

Dawn beamed at all of them, but that beam was gone once she realized who else was sitting at the table. A shocked expression jumped on to her features and her eyes got real big.

"_Barry_?!" Dawn exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I live in Twinleaf Town too, remember?" Barry retorted, blowing his nose with some tissue and sighing heavily, not so hungry anymore.

Dawn smiled brightly at him. "It's good to see you, it really is, Barry! I missed you!" She tells him honestly.

"Someone's in love!" Lucas sang teasingly.

Dawn and Barry's faces flushed red and they glared at him. "WE ARE NOT IN LOVE!" They both yelled loudly.

Lucas only laughed.

"Well, if you two aren't in love, why don't you both dance together then?" Zoey questioned them as she got up. "I have to go. I'm going to Hoenn soon, so I have to get ready."

"Me too." Kenny spoke up, standing up.

"Aw…" Dawn didn't want them to leave.

"It was nice seeing you guys!" Lucas tells them.

Kenny and Zoey both nod before leaving the restaurant, off to start a new Pokémon journey.

Lucas turned to look at Dawn and Barry. "You both dance right now. It was Zoey's last request, so you both better do it. Plus, it'd be very amusing to see you both dancing together! Hehe…"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Barry shouted, coughing a little due to his cold. "I'm not dancing with her!"

"Yeah, I…I can't dance with Barry!" Dawn exclaimed with a shake of her head, looking all embarrassed with her cheeks red.

"Ha. Cowards." Lucas says.

"_Cowards_?" Barry looked insulted and he got to his feet, pushing his chair back and making it fall to the ground. "I'm not a coward! Come on, Dawn! Let's show him that we aren't cowards!" He shouted,

Dawn looked shocked. "B-But I…"

"_Come on_!" Barry shouts, grabbing Dawn's wrist and yanking her out of her chair and towards the dance floor.

Dawn blushed even more when he touched her and she realized that his hand felt really warm, nice too. She found that she didn't mind Barry touching her, which was strange.

Lucas watched them while laughing. Someone new was on the stage and they were singing _Captain of Her Heart_ by Double.

"_It was way past midnight and she still couldn't fall asleep…_" The person on stage sang pretty well.

Everyone in the place started dancing slowly to the song, all having partners with them. Pokémon also danced to the song.

Barry nervously put his arms around Dawn's waist, pulling her close and moving with her to the music. Dawn was blushing really hard and had her hands on his shoulders, her eyes darting all over the place due to nervousness and embarrassment.

Lucas watched in great interest, fascinated.

"_Not only for a cruise, not only for a day…_"

Barry was extremely nervous. He began to wonder why he was doing this anyway. He was doing this just to prove that he wasn't a coward, but he had a feeling that he just wanted to dance with Dawn for the heck of it. His headache was slowly going away as he looked elsewhere, never looking at Dawn's red face, and she was doing the same to him.

"_Too long ago, too long apart. She couldn't wait another day for…the captain of her heart..._"

Dawn felt really strange dancing with Barry. Why was she getting all worked up over this? It was only _Barry_! But, for some odd reason, she kind of liked dancing with him. It made her feel warm and fuzzy inside, it made her have butterflies in her stomach.

"_As the day came up she made a start. She stopped waiting another day for…the captain of her heart…_"

Barry finally got the courage to look at Dawn's face. He blushed as he saw how red her face was from all the blushing. He wondered what was going through her mind. The blond boy held in all his sneezes and coughs because he didn't want to ruin this moment. It felt so nice to be dancing with Dawn. He absentmindedly pulled her closer to his body, staring at her face.

"_Too long ago, too long apart. She couldn't wait another day for…the captain of her heart…_"

Dawn realized Barry was looking at her and she looked up, blushing even harder from doing so. She started to feel weak at the knees and she was angry with herself for getting so worked up over a simple dance with Barry! Has she always been attracted to him? That was impossible! Could it actually be love at first sight?

Wait, what in the world was she thinking? _Love_?! Why in the world did she bring _that_ up? This had nothing to do with love! Dawn felt very silly, but looked into Barry's orange colored eyes as he stared into her blue ones. Was it okay to actually _love_ Barry?

"_As the day came up she made a stop. She stopped waiting another day for…the captain of her heart…_"

Barry started to really see how pretty Dawn was. Her eyes were perfect, beautiful blue orbs that shone kindness and happiness. Her hair was as blue as the magnificent ocean. How had Barry not noticed this before? What made today so special? How is he just noticing this now? Could he actually be attracted to Dawn after all this time? Could he actually have _feelings_ for her? That would be strange, but at the same time…nice.

"_Too long ago, too long apart. She couldn't wait another day for…the captain of her heart…_"

Dawn felt herself leaning up towards him and her eyes slowly shut. She pressed her lips to his in a kiss, her heart beating wildly in her chest. She could also feel Barry's heart beating just as rapidly as hers.

Barry was completely shocked, but he found himself returning her soft, gentle kiss, closing his eyes and pulling her closer, wrapping her up in a hug instead of just around her waist.

Their lips moved together in perfect sync and the kiss started to deepen very quickly.

Lucas was _extremely_ shocked at what he was witnessing. How was this possible? How are they just going to fall for each other so quickly? "Maybe I shouldn't have made them dance…" He muttered, his eyes as huge as the sun.

After a very long moment of blissful kissing, Barry unlocked his lips from Dawn's, opening his eyes and blushing crazily. Dawn was blushing too, her whole face as red as a tomato.

"What…was that?" Dawn breathed, trying to catch her breath, her eyes wide and innocent looking.

"Um…a-a kiss?" Barry stuttered, still holding her close.

"Does this mean that…we're together or something?" Dawn questioned him quietly.

Barry thought about it. It would be nice to have Dawn as his girlfriend. He really did like her now. After that kiss, he was sure of it.

"I'd like us to be…" Barry answered quietly.

Dawn smiled shyly up at him. "I'd…I'd like it too."

They hugged each other, feeling happy in each other's embrace. They both closed their eyes and let small smiles appear on their faces. Barry got a little worried though. He was sick and they had just shared a kiss. Dawn might catch his cold!

Suddenly, Dawn jerked away from him, her eyes getting huge. "W-Wait…!" She screamed suddenly. "Oh my gosh I remember now!" She shouted loudly, shock and fear crawling around her face.

"What? What do you remember?" Barry asked frantically.

"Palmer's your _father_!" Dawn yelled.

Barry looked perplexed. "Yeah, so?"

"Your _father_ is out on a date with my _mother_!" Dawn shouted out frantically, waving her arms in the air rapidly and crazily. "They're on a date together and…and…and we're…"

Barry realized now. "So Johanna…is your _mother_?" He breathed.

Dawn nodded her head rapidly. "Yes!"

"I remember now…" Barry whispered, feeling numb all of a sudden. "How could I forget?"

"B-Barry…what are we going to do?" Dawn asked worriedly. "We can't be together while our parents are _dating_! It just…it just won't be right! What are we going to do?"

Barry looked worried as well and Lucas suddenly approached them, also looking worried.

"Guys, what's up? What's wrong?" Lucas questioned them both, giving them a concerned look.

"Barry is Palmer's son, Lucas!" Dawn exclaimed loudly, tears appearing in her eyes.

Lucas frowned in confusion. "Yeah, so?"

"_So_ our parents are _dating_!" Dawn yelps, her eyes wide.

"Yeah, I know, it's weird," Lucas spoke. "But what does that have to do with you and Barry?"

"Don't you get it?" Barry asked him in disbelief, coughing a bit due to his sickness.

"Barry…you don't look so good." Dawn pointed out worriedly, taking his hand in hers.

"I'm fine…" Barry fibbed.

"So what if they're dating? How does that affect you guys?" Lucas questioned them, folding his arms over his chest. "You guys can still be together. It's no problem. Nobody said our parents were getting married."

Dawn and Barry looked at each other and then back at Lucas. "But…it _might_ happen! It's a huge possibility!" They both said simultaneously.

"Yeah, it's a possibility, but things change, you know? Besides, you guys make a good couple," Lucas commented. "You both look good together, so I suggest you keep it that way, Dawn, Barry."

Dawn and Barry thought about it for a long moment before smiling, looking at each other and then back at Lucas.

"I love you, big brother! You're so smart!" Dawn says cheerfully, attacking her older brother with a hug.

Lucas laughed and returned her hug, gently patting her back. "Yeah, yeah. I love you too, sis."

Dawn broke the hug and then turned around to give Barry one. Barry grinned and returned her embrace.

"All you guys have to do is keep this a secret from our parents. Everything will be okay." Lucas tells them.

"Right!" Barry says.

_It's going to be a challenge_, Dawn thought. _But we can do it._


End file.
